Wooster City Council OKs easement for new pizza place

Gionino's Pizzeria planning on opening Wooster location

WOOSTER -- One agenda item during Monday night's City Council meeting had Jon Ansel nearly salivating at the mouth.

"Your pizza and wings and Jo-jo's are amazing," Ansel said to Dan Kipfer, who is opening a pizza shop in downtown Wooster.

Kipfer, who owns the Orrville franchise of a regional pizza shop called Gionino's Pizzeria, was in attendance as he intends to open a Wooster location.

He was before council asking for an easement into the public right of way in order to construct an access ramp into the pizza shop, which will reside on North Buckeye Street. The ramp was cited as a way for the business to meet requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Council unanimously approved plans (7-0, and suspended the rules requiring three readings) to grant the easement to allow a ramp to intrude into the sidewalk no more than four feet. The sidewalk in front of the building extends more than eight feet.

Gionino's plans include the spaces of 116, 120 and 122 N. Buckeye St., where Art 101 Gallery, the Wayne County Republicans and Mama Bird's Place currently are located.

Neil Cotiaux, spokesperson for Washington Properties, which manages the building as a portion of the Liberty Commons development, confirmed the move.

Kipfer told council he did not have a tentative open date for the pizza place, just sometime in the fall.

Dan Lutz, chairman for the Wayne County Republican Party, confirmed the headquarters was relocating to accommodate the restaurant.

He said the new party headquarters will be in the Merchants Block building, next door to Jimmy John's.

While that portion of the development is being built out, the headquarters will be temporarily relocated in half of the Newberry building on Liberty Street.

"The Party has to be out of its current location by the end of May and we're being told that the build-out at our new location will take approximately 90 days," Lutz noted, via email, and that they expect to be signing a lease shortly.

Mama Bird's Facebook page indicates it moved the weekend of May 2 to 243 E. Liberty, underneath the Best Western hotel.

It is unknown the fate of Art 101 Gallery.

Reporter Steve Huszai can be reached at 330-287-1645 or shuszai@the-daily-record.com. He is @GeneralSmithie on Twitter.